Iterations

Month: April 2015

In making VidMob as efficient as possible, we had the idea of capping the number of iterations that an editor will do on any given project. Each editor can include what they feel is the appropriate number of iterations in each bid or auto-bid. This will prevent excessive notes from clients and help give editors a time frame to implement all of the necessary changes. It’s important to make sure that you can build a project to satisfy the client in the time frame and number of iterations specified.

But how does an editor know how many iterations to include in their bid? There are several factors to consider:

How difficult will it be to create your first assembly cut?

This will be very dependent on the specific project. For the water polo highlight film I’ve previously discussed, I have cut many sports highlights before, but I have never worked with water polo specifically. I was able to use my experience to organize everything quickly and build an initial assembly cut relatively quickly. If you have never worked in sports before, you may need to submit a very rough cut, to make sure the client is happy with the direction you’re heading.

Does the client need to add anything to the assembly cut?

In the water polo video, after building the assembly cut, I thought the video needed an introduction. I contacted the client about this, and they were able to get me an introduction in a few days. They also wanted me to add a few more highlights, so that needs to be accounted for.

Do you need to do color correction or work on the audio?

This can be time consuming, depending on how much work is needed. For the water polo highlight film, the client had a specific song that they wanted me to use. I didn’t have to work with the audio too much, because it was faint underneath the audio track, but if there is any dialogue, this will have to be given more time. Also, if there is any ADR (automatic dialogue replacement), you will have to account for that.

What is your availability and when is the project due?

If you are unable to make more than a few iterations, it’s important to only bid on projects that you’ll have the time to work on. If you cannot meet the number of iterations in the deadline, you shouldn’t bid on a project. If the client has the same number of days before the deadline as iterations, which means the client will need to see a new iteration each day.

These are just some of the important factors that go into creating your bid, but there are many more considerations. VidMob would love to hear your feedback on iterations! Please comment below with any ideas or suggestions you have for the project.